- Oct 13, 1999
- 2,807
- 0
So last week I'm out west vacationing with my family. We were taking the trailer up into the Cascade mountains for a couple days. About 25 miles from the summit of Snoqualmie Pass we started to smell burning rubber. More specifically tire. I kept thinking a big rig up ahead was shedding a tire, so we kept going. Just past the summit a pickup pulled alongside and the passenger shouted: "You're on fire!"
Somehow I kept my cool, pulled over and got all three kids out of the back and away from the truck. The guys who warned me also pulled over and kept saying: "Get away, you're gas tank's going to blow!"
It only took a minute for me to determine the fire was on the right side of the pickup and the fuel tank was on the left side. I was more worried about the fire being close to the propane tanks on the trailer and considered pulling the hitch pin and safety chains then driving the truck away from the trailer.
Instead I pulled the fire extinguisher out of the trailer and went to work on the flames. An 18-wheeler stopped and the driver hopped out with another extinguisher and together we got the flames out, but it was still smoking. I looked underneath and saw the spare tire had caught on fire. I dug out the tire changing tools, dropped the spare and rolled it into the creek next to the road.
The original dual-outlet muffler and tail pipes were replaced with a single-outlet 3-inch muffler and tail pipe. Obviously it was too close to the spare tire.
Once the culprit was found I inspected the underside for any signs of damage from the flames. Thankfully nothing else was damaged. I hauled the, now full of water, spare tire out of the creek before getting an "environmental pollution" ticket, tossed in the bed of the truck and drove to Cle Elum, WA where I bought a used spare, gas and lunch.
My wife was still in shock when we were eating lunch and asked me how I kept calm throughout the whole ordeal. The only thing I can think of is that I had my morning coffee!
Somehow I kept my cool, pulled over and got all three kids out of the back and away from the truck. The guys who warned me also pulled over and kept saying: "Get away, you're gas tank's going to blow!"
It only took a minute for me to determine the fire was on the right side of the pickup and the fuel tank was on the left side. I was more worried about the fire being close to the propane tanks on the trailer and considered pulling the hitch pin and safety chains then driving the truck away from the trailer.
Instead I pulled the fire extinguisher out of the trailer and went to work on the flames. An 18-wheeler stopped and the driver hopped out with another extinguisher and together we got the flames out, but it was still smoking. I looked underneath and saw the spare tire had caught on fire. I dug out the tire changing tools, dropped the spare and rolled it into the creek next to the road.
The original dual-outlet muffler and tail pipes were replaced with a single-outlet 3-inch muffler and tail pipe. Obviously it was too close to the spare tire.
Once the culprit was found I inspected the underside for any signs of damage from the flames. Thankfully nothing else was damaged. I hauled the, now full of water, spare tire out of the creek before getting an "environmental pollution" ticket, tossed in the bed of the truck and drove to Cle Elum, WA where I bought a used spare, gas and lunch.
My wife was still in shock when we were eating lunch and asked me how I kept calm throughout the whole ordeal. The only thing I can think of is that I had my morning coffee!
